Did you know that pharmaceutical companies are charging patients up to $100,000 to $200,000 or even $500,000 a year for medication?
For instance, the drug Abiraterone extends the lifespan of patients previously treated for metastatic prostate cancer. Even though the drug doesn’t cure anything, even at its lowest price it can cost about $10,000 per month.
The brand name version of this drug (Zytiga) by Johnson & Johnson, the manufacturers of this medication attempted to justify this extremely high price by pointing at the 2018 Janssen U.S. Transparency Report that states, “We have an obligation to ensure that the sale of our medicines provides us with the resources necessary to invest in future research and development.”
This basically means that these high prices are necessary in order to perform the expensive research required to maintain the high quality of the drug.
However, is their justification valid?
Quality of American Medication v/s Other Countries
It can be easy to believe what the companies tell you, and think that the high costs are actually a compliment towards the quality of the product that you depend on for your wellbeing. However, this justification that the money is used for better research and a better product is highly deceptive.
When it comes to drugs and medicines, the U.K. is the second most expensive country in the world (right behind the U.S.). However, the price difference is much more than you’d expect.
The citizens of U.K. on average pay about 56 percent of what an average America pays for the exact same drug.
Not only are the drugs in America drastically more expensive than the rest of the world, but the quality of the drugs produced in America aren’t necessarily better than medications produced from other countries.
Developed nations such as Canada, England, Mexico, and Australia use a structured process before introducing a new drug to the public. In most international pharmacies, a government official contacts the pharmaceutical company planning to launch a new prescription drug in the market.
This government official determines whether the drug needs to be produced. They make this judgment based on multiple factors, including whether the new drug offers advantages over existing drugs, whether the price remains reasonable compared to other market options, and the risks and benefits of introducing the new drug, among other considerations.
After analyzing all these factors, if the official concludes that introducing the new drug benefits the public, they negotiate the price based on the drug’s quality and compare it with similar drugs already available in the market.
Once the government official and the pharmaceutical company agree on a reasonable price, they begin the process of releasing the drug to the public.
Though the quality of the medication in America is the same quality as drugs from other countries, a big difference is that the governments tend to set the drug prices in other countries, whereas the United States allows pharmaceutical companies to set their own prices. This is often why you’ll see the exact same drug in Canada for a fraction of what you’d find at their neighbor to the South.
This can cause the many to be unable to afford their medications at all. In fact, according to this survey, 14% Americans have admitted that they have skipped doses of their medication or didn’t fill a prescription at all because of their high costs.
How to Afford Prescription Drugs in America?
Given the current situation, the U.S. government is unlikely to regulate drug prices soon, so seeking alternatives offers a better option right now.
The best alternative to buying prescription drugs at the moment is importing them from a Canadian Pharmacy.
The Canadian healthcare is one of the best in the world. The reason Americans find it a good option to import drugs, besides the high-quality medications produced there, is that the country lies right next to the U.S. Not only will you save a lot of money on the drugs, but the shipping will also cost less and the delivery time will be short.
However, it is important to stay aware while shopping online; especially while buying medication. Always do thorough research before making an order. There are a lot of risks that can be a result of ordering medication from a fake online pharmacy.
A reliable way to ensure you order from an authentic pharmacy is to visit this site, which the Canadian Pharmacy Association operates. This site lets you compare the prices of similar medications across various Canadian pharmacies. Websites listed on this site are confirmed to be legitimate and safe to order from!
If you encounter a site that is fake or seems unauthentic or shady, report it immediately so that a background check can alert other consumers about the website.
